Fatawaa

Subject : Islamic Ruling on Gift Cards in Online Shopping Applications
Fatwa Number : 3825
Date : 05-11-2023
Classified :
Fatwa Type : Search Fatawaa

Question :

I work as an intermediary through an application. Among the rewards, there is a card called a "gift card". I buy it for 190 dinars while it is loaded with 212 dinars, and I pay for it through electronic banking. After payment, they send me a code to use on the website when making a purchase. What is the ruling of Sharia on this card?



The Answer :

All perfect praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

The card mentioned in the question is a prepaid card used for online purchases, where the user loads a specific amount of money onto the card to use for making purchases on the website affiliated with the card provider.

After having conducting research, it was found out that the policy of this website is to provide additional credit on top of the paid amount. For example, when you load the card with 190 dinars, the website grants you a balance of 212 dinars on the card.

From a fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) perspective, the prepaid card represents a cash value within the limits of the amount paid by the customer. However, the seller has provided the cardholder with an additional balance as a gift, as an incentive to encourage purchases exclusively from their platform.

In conclusion, the additional amount on top of the prepaid value is considered a gift from the seller (the website) to the buyer of the card, encouraging them to engage with the website. Therefore, there is no religious objection to purchasing the mentioned card. And Allah the Almighty knows best.






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